6:30 am - I wake up, perform ablutions, chug a quart of water, and leave the apartment.
7:00 am - I walk to Beulahland, where I meet some friends to watch the FA Cup final. I have a sesame bagel with cream cheese and tomato and about 5 cups of Stumptown coffee, and Chelsea defeats Everton 2-to-1 (3 beauty goals, but a slightly underwhelming game otherwise).
9:30 am - Audrey and I go to the Portland Farmers Market, where we buy asparagus, onion, bread, strawberries, peas, and lamb kebab meat; we also have a pleasant encounter with my boss.
11:30 am - I join a half dozen other Timbers Army at PGE Park to meet with Portland Timbers manager Gavin Wilkinson, assistant coach Amos Magee & other Timbers front office fellows. Topics discussed are: the June 28 Timbers U23 game being hosted by the Timbers Army; the Timbers vs Burnley friendly in July; and continuing efforts by both the TA and FO to support and cross-market one another. A genial meeting as usual, with everyone in good spirits (dampened somewhat by the impending funeral service for Howie later in the day).
12:30 pm - Dave, Trask and I split a white pie and some Pacificos at Eat Pizza.
1:00 pm - I attend the final funeral service for Timber Howie at PGE Park. About 40 people are in attendance and a few make some very nice remarks about Howie. For the second time in a week I’m in tears. Kurt then scatters Howie’s ashes beneath the stadium in Feral Cat Alley (Howie was a great cat lover, and one of his beloved cats’ ashes are scattered along with his own).
2:00 pm - We have a wake for Howie at Bitter End Pub. Bushmills, vitamin R, and love.
3:30 pm - A few of us walk to Goose Hollow Inn for a pitcher of Hopworks Lager.
5:00 pm - After a stop at the store we walk back to 18th & Salmon to join the Timbers Army tailgate. Wursts, carne asada, bottles of Pliny and Hop Stoopid, and plenty of love (mixed in with some good natured mockery of a Brian’s favorite team).
6:45 pm - I head into PGE Park for the Portland Timbers vs Vancouver Whitecaps match. The Whitecaps keeper trips Johan Claesson in the box in the 6th minute, and should be given a red card; the referee produces only a yellow, but does award a penalty, which Ryan Pore buries in front of a jubilant Woodshed for a 1-0 Timbers lead. George Josten finishes the scoring in the 41st minute with a beautiful run and shot. I had remarked earlier in the evening that I thought Josten was a trickster, a real Dennis the Menace, and that he’d do good things for us this season, and sure enough he doubles the lead. At halftime a handful of us migrate to section 222, above the visiting Whitecaps supporters, to watch the Timbers attack the goal in the 2nd half; by my count the Timbers miss three very solid goal scoring chances, but still have enough posession and attack to make one hopeful. Final score 2-nil to the Rose City. [report | report | highlights | highlights | stats]
Ricky, Lendog, Steven & JT
9:30 pm - After a brief walkabout for some fresh air and head clearing, we head to the post-match celebration back at the Bitter End Pub. Many of the ~20 Whitecaps supporters who made the trip are in the pub, and even though there’s some gentle ribbing (“you drove all this way just to see a loss” etc.) there are also camaraderie and shared pints and cheer. We run into former Timbers GM Jim Taylor at the pub; it is great to see him, and to know that he’s still coming to Timbers games. The man is a legend and no two ways about it.
11:00 pm - A handful of us end our evening with fried pies and frites at the food cart cluster at 12th & Hawthorne. I eat the BBQ brisket pie, and it is excellent; I get a strawberry pie to take home to Audrey (and upon sampling, it is also excellent).
12:00 am - After checking the web for match reports and highlights, I am off to the land of zzz…
